Lesson 22- Sources of Law SS.7.C.3.10 Overview In this lesson, students will recognize and compare types of law and understand their sources. Essential Question What are the sources and types of law? NGSSS Benchmark SS.7.C.3.10 Identify sources and types (civil, criminal, constitutional, military) of law. Learning Goals/Benchmark Clarifications Students will use examples of historical law codes to identify how laws originated anddeveloped in Western society. Students will recognize constitutional, statutory, case, and common law as sources of law. Students will compare civil, criminal, constitutional, and/or military law. Bell Ringer Write down 5 laws that you know.If you can think of more, great! Ancient Laws You will learn about an ancient system of laws that began in Mesopotamia, land that is now Iraqand Syria. Hammurabi's Code of Laws
The Code of Hammurabi is a written code of rules that guided the society of Babylon around B.C. The Code included 282 laws that dealt with everyday life. It was the first time a written set of lawsgoverned a society. This act of writing laws down and creating a structure and process for laws greatly influenced howother societies developed their own laws. This is true for the U.S. and is evident by the U.S. Constitution. The U.S. Constitution is a series oflaws written to guide society in the United States. Guess that document Can you identify this law document that was influential to the founding fathers when they were seeking American Independence? Magna Carta In order to avoid a war, King John of England signed the Magna Carta in 1215. The Magna Carta is also known as the Great Charter of Freedoms. The Magna Carta was written by a group of English nobility (barons) because they wanted toprotect their rights and property against the king. During the American Revolution, the Magna Carta was one inspiration for the colonists toseek their independence from the king of England. The colonists believed they were entitled to the same rights as Englishmen, rights guaranteedin the Magna Carta. They embedded those rights into the laws of their states and later into theU.S. Constitution and Bill of Rights. Magna Carta Continued Both of these quotes are examples of how the Magna Carta inspired the founders of ournation and the writing of the U.S. Constitution.For example, the Fifth Amendment to theConstitution ("no person shall be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due processof law.") was inspired by the second quote from the Magna Carta. "No freeman shall be taken, imprisoned, nor will We proceed against or prosecute him, except by the lawful judgment of his peers and by the law of the land." " to no one will We deny or delay, right or justice." Learning Checkpoint The core source of American law is the U.S. Constitution. Based on what you have learnedabout the Code of Hammurabi and the Magna Carta, how did the documents influence the U.S.Constitution? Sources of Law Where do our laws come from? Laws keep our society running as smoothly as possible. Whenyou think of the law, you probably think of rules that say what people can and cant do. We allknow that you cannot steal from others without getting into trouble. Thats one example of alaw, but most laws set rules for how things work. There are laws about how people buy and sellproperty, how we elect government officials, and how activities in daily life should work. Wheredo all these laws come from? There are three main sources of law in the United States:constitutions, statutes, and regulations Constitutions The United States Constitution is often called the supreme law of the land. That means nolaw in the country can violate the rules, laws, and rights set forth in the Constitution. Someparts of the Constitution give specific laws that apply everywhere in the United States. Forexample, if someone commits a crime in one state and then flees to another state, theConstitution allows the criminal to be extradited, or sent back, to the state where the crimewas committed. Other parts of the Constitution either authorize (allow) types of laws thatmay be passed or forbid (ban) certain types of laws. For example, the Constitution allowsCongress to pass laws about how business is conducted across state lines. The Constitutionforbids Congress from passing laws that limit peoples freedom of religion. The bottom line isthat no law can be made in the U.S. unless the Constitution allows it to be made. Each statealso has its own constitution that works the same way as the U.S. Constitution, but onlyapplies to that state. Many laws in your state come from your states constitution and do notapply outside your state. Even so, laws in state constitutions must not violate the U.S.Constitution. Statutes The Constitution gives Congress permission to pass laws about a limited number of topics.When Congress passes a law, that law is called a statute. Statutes passed by Congress apply tothe entire United States. All of the thousands of statutes passed by Congress are collectedtogether and organized by subject. The collection is called the United States Code. For example, the Constitution says Congress has the power to establish post offices and passany laws necessary and proper for carrying out that power. This means that Congress canestablish post offices and pass all the laws needed for running a postal service. In the part ofthe U.S. Code that deals with post offices, you would find a statute that establishes the UnitedStates Postal Service. You would also find many other statutes having to do with running theU.S. Postal Service. There are statutes about what can and cant be sent through the mail, howthe Postal Service must manage its money, working for the Postal Service, and many more. State constitutions also authorize state legislatures to pass state laws. The state laws are alsocalled statutes, and they only apply inside the state. Often, state statutes allow localgovernments to pass their own laws. Local laws are usually called ordinances, and they onlyapply within local boundaries, such as within a city or county. Regulations Congress has the power to pass laws, but not to carry them out. The executive branch has thepower to execute, or carry out, lawsbut not to pass them! This means the two branches mustwork together. The executive branch is full of agencies that carry out laws. There are departmentsof Agriculture, Transportation, Treasury, Veterans Affairs, and many more including the PostalService! Congress does not have time to pass laws about every little detail of how all these agenciesshould run. Instead, Congress gives each agency the power to create its own rules. The rules that anagency within the executive branch makes are called regulations. A regulation has power similar to alaw. Some regulations say what people can and cant do. For example, there are Postal Serviceregulations that prohibit spitting, blocking the door, or asking for money at a post office. Otherregulations describe how things work. For example, the Postal Service has a regulation allowingcustomers to pay for postage over the Internet. States also have agencies, and state agencies alsoissue regulations. Judicial Precedent & Interpretation
Statutes and regulations arent always clear.Very often, people will argue about the meaning of a law and how aparticular law should work. When people argue about how a statute or regulation should work, it often leads toa lawsuit. In the lawsuit, one side complains that it has suffered because the other side has not followed the lawproperly. The lawsuit will go through the court system. The courts job is to interpret the law and decide how itshould be applied to a specific case. The lawsuit will begin in the trial court and might be appealed all the way to the Supreme Court. Once theSupreme Court has decided how the law should be interpreted, that interpretation must be followed in thefuture. This is called a precedent.A precedent is a decision that people can point to and say, Here is how youhandled this situation before. In this way, the courts interpretation acts as a law. Only the court can change aprecedent. It does this by interpreting the law differently, which creates a new precedent. At the state level, a states court of appeals and supreme court set precedents for how the states laws shouldbe interpreted.Types of Law Laws can be divided into two main categories: criminal and civil. The sources oflaw you just read about create both kinds of laws. However, courts treat criminal and civil cases differently Judicial precedent and cases become sources of law called case law and common law.Case law is lawestablished by the outcome of former cases and common law is legal precedent based on customs and priorlegal decisions; it is used in civil cases. Types of law Types of Law Laws can be divided into two main categories: criminal and civil. The sources oflaw you just read about create both kinds of laws. However, courts treat criminal and civilcases differently. Civil law Criminal law Juvenile law Military law Constitutional law is a source of law and it is also a type of law Constitutional law defines the powers between states. Constitutional law deals with the relationship between the government and citizens. Criminal Law Criminal laws are laws that make certain actions a crime. These laws come from all three levels ofgovernment (federal, state, and local) and can be found in statutes, regulations, and sometimes instate constitutions. There are two general levels of crimes. Felonies are serious crimes that normally have a punishment of more than a year in jail. Misdemeanors are less serious crimes where the penalty is usually less than a year in jail or even just afine. A law that makes it a crime to do something usually says whether violating the law will be considereda felony or a misdemeanor. Felonies and misdemeanors are also divided into classes depending on how serious they are. In acriminal trial, the question is always, Did this person commit a crime? The government is alwayson one side of the case, charging someone with a crime. The person accused of the crime, called thedefendant, is always on the other side. The defendant is either found innocent of the crime and isacquitted, or he or she is found guilty and is sentenced with a fine or jail time. Civil Law Heres a basic rule of thumb: If its not criminal, its civil! Civil laws involve a wide range of subjects such as property, divorce, contracts, wills, personal injury,bankruptcy, employment, agriculture, and taxes. For this reason, there are many more civil laws thancriminal laws. Civil laws usually help settle disagreements between people. People may disagree overthings like rights to property, custody of children in a divorce, or what a contract says. The two sides in a civil case each get to tell their side of the story. The judge or jury decides whatthe facts are and what the remedy, or solution, should be. Sometimes, like criminal cases, civil casesinvolve someone who has injured someone else. Many injuries, such as accidents, are not caused bya crime. The person who caused the accident and the person who was hurt must come to anagreement about how the injured person can be compensated for his or her loss. Very often, civillaw does not involve a problem or disagreement at all. If someone wants to make a will or draw upa contract to sell something, there are civil laws that say how those things should be Special Systems of Law There are two systems of law that work a little differently from our regular system of law. Theyare different because they deal with two unique populationsthe military and people underthe age of 18. The special circumstances of these two groups make it necessary to havesystems of law that are designed to handle their unique issues. Military Law The U.S. Constitution gives Congress the power to make Rules for the Government andRegulation of the land and naval Forces. Congress did this by enacting the Uniform Code ofMilitary Justice (UCMJ), which is a set of criminal laws that apply to people in the military. TheUCMJ also lists the procedures for conducting a military trial and explains what punishmentsare allowed. The military justice system is entirely separate from the civilian system. It isdesigned for the special needs of the military, so the UCMJ contains some laws that would notbe needed for regular citizens. For example, it includes laws against leaving the military withoutpermission, showing disrespect to a superior officer, and failing to obey an order. All membersof the military are subject to the military justice system. Juvenile Law Criminal laws apply to everyone. But when a person under age 18 commits a crime, most stateshave a system of juvenile justice that deals with the case. The juvenile justice system is usually moreflexible than the adult justice system. It allows a judge to look at many factors in a childs life whendeciding what the consequences for committing a crime should be. The juvenile system is differentbecause, as a society, we believe that young people sometimes make bad choices that they wouldnot make if they were more mature. The juvenile system offers more chances for young people tolearn from mistakes without being negatively affected for the rest of their lives. Outside the juvenilejustice system, there are other kinds of laws that affect people under 18. Some of these are lawstargeted at young people, like curfew laws or laws about school attendance. Other laws have beenpassed in order to protect children from abuse. Most states have a whole set of laws that describewhat happens when an abused child is removed from his or her home. There are also laws aboutadoption, foster care, and special health and education programs for children. Key Comparisons Civil and criminal law are the types of law that most often impact U.S. citizens. Juvenile law and criminal law are both concerned with crime, but juvenile law only applies to peopleunder the age of 18. Military law is for military members and does not apply to civilians. Constitutional law deals with issues related to the government and the states and the governmentand its citizens. Criminal law deals with crime and civil law deals with issues that are not related to crime. What type of law am I? When a soldier failed to return to base after going on leave, he was charged and brought totrial for being AWOL (Absent Without Official Leave). What type of law am I? Military Law
When a soldier failed to return to base after going on leave, he was charged and brought totrial for being AWOL (Absent Without Official Leave). Military Law What type of law am I? A man was caught on tape robbing a gas station. He was arrested, brought to trial, and foundguilty of burglary. He was sentenced to 10 years in prison and a fine. What type of law am I? Criminal Law
A man was caught on tape robbing a gas station. He was arrested, brought to trial, and foundguilty of burglary. He was sentenced to 10 years in prison and a fine. Criminal Law What type of law am I? The Smith family has decided to adopt their foster child, Anna. They work with their stateadoption agency to complete all of the necessary paperwork. What type of law am I? Juvenile Law
The Smith family has decided to adopt their foster child, Anna. They work with their stateadoption agency to complete all of the necessary paperwork. Juvenile Law What type of law am I? Julie was pulled over by the police at 2:00am and was charged with breaking the curfew law inher town. She was fined and released back to her parents What type of law am I? Juvenile Law
Julie was pulled over by the police at 2:00am and was charged with breaking the curfew law inher town. She was fined and released back to her parents Juvenile Law What type of law am I? A married couple decides to get a divorce. They disagree over who gets what. A judge hearsboth sides and makes a decision about how their property should be divided. What type of law am I? Civil Law
A married couple decides to get a divorce. They disagree over who gets what. A judge hearsboth sides and makes a decision about how their property should be divided. Civil Law What type of law am I? Karen ordered an iPod off the internet and paid with her credit card, but she never receivedthe order. The seller is refusing to refund her money, so she takes the matter to court. What type of law am I? Civil Law
Karen ordered an iPod off the internet and paid with her credit card, but she never receivedthe order. The seller is refusing to refund her money, so she takes the matter to court. Civil Law Formative Assessment Explain the five different sources of law you have learnedabout in this lesson by explaining each source in your ownwords. If you want a 100, you must have at least 5 sentences, and they all must be correct Content Vocabulary case law noun
Word/Term Part of Speech Definition case law noun law established based on the outcome of former court cases civil law law that deals with relationships between people (rather than relationships between people and the government) Code of Hammurabi proper noun a written code of rules that guided the ancient society of Babylon; dates back to 1772 B.C. common law law based on customs and prior legal decisions; used in civil cases constitutional law law that focuses on interpreting the U.S. Constitution criminal law law that deals with crimes and the punishments for those crimes juvenile law law that deals with people who are under the age of 18 Magna Carta a government document that limited the power of the king of England and protected the rights of the nobility; written by the English nobles in 1215 military law laws that apply only to people in the military regulation a rule that a government agency makes to enforce a law source a main reference or point of origin statutory law laws passed by Congress or a state legislature type a particular category, kind, or group